4000 College Students, 16 Properties, and a Week that Changes Lives 

by Julie Clapp, Mission Director of WyldLife & Camp Director for Numerous Work Weeks

At work weeks across the country, you won’t find college kids going down the slide, competing in a volleyball tournament or racing go-karts. Instead, you’ll find these campers building benches, painting backdrops, shoveling snow and deep-cleaning bathrooms. 
And yet, many college kids would still say that work week was the greatest week of their lives. 

Whether they come to camp already in a relationship with Jesus or they’re still exploring, students get to experience firsthand what it means to give their lives away. They’re given a vision of something bigger  than themselves. The tasks they’re completing may seem insignificant, but students learn that what they’re doing will impact thousands of summer campers – some for a week and others for eternity.

At the end of each day at work week, hundreds of college students gather for club. They laugh, play, worship and hear the Gospel clearly proclaimed. At many work weeks, club is followed by cabin time where students can process all that they’ve heard and experienced.

Anthony Adamson, YL College Director in Houston, has been taking college students to work week at Crooked Creek Ranch for many years. He says that work week is much like a backpacking trip with high school campers. Working hard with their friends “allows the walls to fall down and the Gospel to come forward.”

“I have so many students who say work week was the time they started following Jesus. It’s when they went from knowing Jesus to following Him,” says Anthony.
Work week is a unique opportunity to get our college friends in front of the Gospel. The bonus? It’s one of the most inexpensive options out there. Whether kids are driving with a group of friends or riding a bus, they are often only responsible for the cost of transportation.

Anthony says the low cost has been especially helpful as he works with lower-income college students.

“Work week is a no-brainer,” says Anthony. “It’s a great option for both students who are already leaders but also for our students who don’t know Jesus.”